Jakarta airport growth blocked

PLANS to expand Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport have been blocked by a local authority who wants the investors to build another airport elsewhere.

Tangerang Municipal Government rejected the Rp11.7 trillion (US$1.38 billion) expansion plans of airport operator Angkasa Pura II, saying the airport was already overcrowded and expanding it would only be a short-term solution.

“Angkasa Pura II should just build a new airport in a new location, instead of expanding it, which is already overcapacity now,” said Tangerang’s deputy mayor Arief Wismansyah. He pointed to the large amount of unused land elsewhere in the region, particularly a 700-hectare plot now controlled by state-run oil company Pertamina in Balaraja.

More than half of the airport is located in Tangerang.

Harry Chayono, Angkasa Pura II’s corporate secretary, said the authority did not understand the complexity of the task.

“We just aren’t considering constructing a new airport, but we do need a complete study on the project, which is beyond our capacity. It is the authority of the central government, who has the responsibility over the national transportation policy,” he said.

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